8 Hotels Where A Celeb Sighting Is Basically Guaranteed

In an increasingly tech-driven and segmented society, Airbnb’s and private rentals have their place and appeal. But for glamour, gossip, and a chance to hobnob with the best of them, one must pack one's bags and head to a hotel.

To help you decide where to stay (and who to see), author Tessa Williams has compiled Hotel of The Stars: A-List Haunts and Hideaways. In the book, she regales readers with stories of Salvador Dalí chucking paint at cars from his hotel balcony in Paris and Lindsay Lohan getting banned from a Hollywood hotel for racking up a $46,000 bill.

Below, we highlight eight hotels from Williams’ book that offer way more than five stars — in every sense of the phrase.

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1Brown’s Hotel: London, England

Courtesy of Brown's Hotel

Today, the stars that float about this London hotel include Cara Delevingne, LeBron James and Liza Minnelli. In the past, it’s served as both a retreat and a launchpad. Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie stayed there after being forced into exile, and it’s said that Brown’s is where Alexander Graham Bell placed the first ever phone call in 1876

2Chateau Marmont: Los Angeles, California

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Quite the party animal? You might benefit from this tip from Harry Cohn, head of Columbia Pictures, to a young William Holden and Glenn Ford: “If you must get in trouble, do it at the Chateau Marmont.”

People who have gotten up to trouble at the Art Deco hotel on the Sunset Strip include Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan, who have both been banned from the hotel. The hotel’s history also has a spot of tragedy: John Belushi died of an overdose at Chateau Marmont and legendary photographer Helmut Newton suffered a fatal car accident while exiting the hotel.

On a happier note, the story goes that James Dean landed his legendary role in Rebel Without a Cause by jumping through a window at the Chateau Marmont during his audition.

The hotel specializes in discretion — earning it the trust of even reclusive stars, including Greta Garbo. Sofia Coppola, who choose the hotel as the setting for her movie Somewhere in 2010, described living at the Chateau Marmont as a rite of passage for an actor. “It means you’ve made it, but you’re still 'down-to-earth,’” Coppola says.

3Gstaad Palace: Gstaad, Switzerland

Courtesy of Gstaad Palance

A fairytale palace in the Swiss Alps, the Gstaad Palace has hosted many stars. Richard Burton called it the most beautiful place in the world, Michael Jackson loved the hotel so much that he wanted to buy it, and Paris Hilton (of course) has partied in its iconic nightclub, which has retained the same glam interior since 1971.

The century-old hotel also had a cameo in The Return of the Pink Panther (1975).

4George V: Paris, France

Gregoire Gardette

‘The Cinq’ in Paris was home to the Beatles in 1964 during their nineteen-day residency at the city’s Olympia Theatre. The stay was immortalized in the famous ‘Pillow Fight’ photograph, taken by Harry Benson, and the group wrote ‘Can’t Buy Me Love’ on a piano wheeled into the room.

Today, you are more likely to see a model or a tennis star lingering in the lobby (it’s a favorite among competitors at Roland-Garros.)

5The Carlyle: New York, New York

The Carlyle

You might recognize this NYC hotel and its famous bar from one of its many appearances on Gossip Girl, Sex and the City, and Girls — or, more recently, Sofia Coppola’s Netflix special, A Very Murray Christmas.

JFK had an apartment in the Carlyle for the last ten years of his life, known then as ‘the New York Whitehouse,’ which was surrounded by rumors of secret visits from Marilyn Monroe.

Diana, Princess of Wales, stayed at the hotel on her visits to NYC, and, in the bar, music royalty Liza Minnelli, Billy Joel, Mariah Carey, Bono, and Cyndi Lauper have all drawn crowds

6The Beverly Hills Hotel: Beverly Hills, CA

Courtesy of The Beverly Hills Hotel

Throw a rock in Beverly Hills, and you’ll probably hit a star — especially if you are staying at The Beverly Hills Hotel. The luxe digs has served as a long-term residence to multiple celebs, including Elvis Presley, Warren Beatty, Cary Grant, and John Lennon

7 Le Meurice: Paris, France

Courtesy of Le Meurice

If you stayed at Le Meurice in Paris during Salvador Dalí’s day, you’d likely see him walking the halls with his two pet ocelots, pressing the elevator button with the tip of his Academician sword, and pouring paint from his balcony onto the cars below.

He once asked room service for a flock of sheep, so if you do visit here today, don’t fret over your own potentially odd requests.

8The Chelsea Hotel: New York, New York

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No other hotel has housed musicians, artists, beat poets, and other various eccentrics over the decades like The Chelsea.

Stanley Bard oversaw the NYC hotel through much of its heyday, encouraging artists to live and work there and taking a forgiving stance with their rent. “[Y]ou would owe him two months’ rent and you would cry to him and he would say, 'Don’t worry, keep painting, keep painting,'" said photographer and resident photographer Timur Cimkentli.

Although now closed, the hotel is immortalized in 'Chelsea Girl’ by Lou Reed, Jefferson Airplane’s ‘Third Week in Chelsea,’ and ‘Chelsea Hotel 2’ by the late Leonard Cohen. The new hotel owners are in talks to possibly re-open in the not-so-distant future, so The Chelsea may once again become the rock-n-roll place to see and be seen.

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